The Allegory of the Cave
by Sora Ryuuzaki
Summary: Kanda's cave is limited to that which he trusts completely. When Allen takes him out, what will he think? Oneshot; based on short story by Plato


**Allegory of the Cave**

I do not own "The Allegory of the Cave", written by Plato (GENIUS, THAT MAN!), or D. Gray-man.

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Darkness. Darkness and loneliness; that was all he had known. Darkness, loneliness; the responsibility cast on him to simply do what he is told-- nothing more, nothing less. That was all Kanda Yuu had ever known.

He wouldn't let anyone get close to him; no, for that was weakness. He knew only his missions. He knew nothing of emotions, of things that made him weak. He would let all of society rot if it meant completing his mission to a T. And that was how he lived.

Living only for the sake of finding that person; living only to complete those missions in a frenzied attempt to find _him_. Kanda knew it was nearly impossible; he may not even exist; but he still had to try. It was the only thing he could ever bear to hope for in the sad, pathetic life he led. He wielded power, yes; incredible power. And yet... and yet he knew nothing of being _human_.

He was alive; he was human. And yet he never experienced human emotions-- human joy, human sorrow. Everything, to him, was simply blank. There was nothing to be made, nothing to be felt, nothing to experience. He lived life only to find _him_. There was no other reason. He couldn't stop to smell the roses, for, in doing so, he would surely become distracted. He would become caught up in the human life and be killed in his moments of weakness.

But then _he_ waltzed into Kanda's life.

Allen Walker, with his bright smiles and his innocence; his love of humanity. It seemed as if only Allen Walker cared about his humanity, or lack thereof. Only Allen Walker, out of the hundreds of people he'd met had the sympathy-- or the idiocy?-- to try to make Kanda human. Only he wanted to make Kanda feel the human emotions that Allen treasured so much.

And _why_, of all people, did it have to be Allen Walker?

Kanda had met so many people, had turned away so many people in disfavor that he thought Allen Walker incapable of actually accomplishing. So many people had tried-- Lenalee, Lavi. And yet, Kanda remained so stubbornly chained to the wall inside his cave, refusing to look at anything other than what he accepted as his life; as his truth, dimly lit by the fires of knowledge.

And what if he was taken out of that cave and into the world above?

Kanda's first question was _how?_ How did he end up falling into Allen Walker's-- that damn beansprout's-- trap? How did he let that damn kid take him out of his chains, take him out of his cave, and show him the light? How did he let him show Kanda the world as Allen Walker viewed it?

At first, the truth was hard to accept for Kanda-- that souls could be saved; that one could destroy yet save at the same time. That life was precious; that friendship was indispensible. But he gradually began to accept it, prompted by the sweet smiles; those dancing silver-blue eyes that never seemed to be the same two days in a row; that childish voice that rang with such a grand innocence.

And finally... finally, Kanda accepted Allen's world as truth.

He began to see the value of the world; the pure joy that comes with spring; the essence of the world in its natural beauty... that true joy comes not from the flawless execution of a mission but from the priceless time spent with true friends; true _nakama_. He began to see the beauty of friendship; the days spent with the rabbit were becoming more and more fun and enjoyable; the calm moments with Lenalee became relaxing.

And the days spent with the bean sprout became the most treasured moments of his life.

Kanda didn't know when it had began happening; he honestly didn't. He only knew that, as Allen showed him more and more of his world, more of his truth, and that as he began to accept more and more of it, Kanda was falling. He was falling head-over-heels for the one person who had enough courage (enough idiocy, enough sympathy) to show him the world as it truly should be; the world as it brings happiness to Allen Walker. There was no doubt in Kanda's mind that he was betraying his truths; that he was becoming weak in falling for this little brat, but he didn't care anymore. Those truths were nonexistent now, replaced by the values that Allen had showed him; that he now accepted as the foundation of his life, of his world.

But all things must come to a bitter end, he realized.

Suddenly, Allen Walker became labeled as a possible traitor. Kanda was suddenly thrown into a world where his once-truths were accepted, realized, and held high with honor... and yet he didn't agree with them. He was stuck in his world again; stuck in this damned hell where nothing had any meaning because Allen Walker wasn't there; because Allen Walker _couldn't_ be there.

He couldn't accept those truths again. He just couldn't. He couldn't find it in himself to deny the truths that Allen, his beloved, had showed him; he couldn't find it in himself to accept that which had been proven wrong so strongly... not when his love couldn't have been any more right; that to be human is the essence of life; that all life is precious; that love is the foundation of everything.

Now his fellow cave-mates, the people who once shared his views, Leverrier, Link... they laughed at him. And although he wanted to prove them wrong, how could he when they knew nothing of the world outside? Of the world brightened by love, by the beauty of nature, by the glory of friendship and trials?

They would never know, he concluded. They would never want to know.

And on days when he, sitting with his face to the cave walls, chained to the spot, immersed by the dim firelight, thought back to those glory-filled days, those priceless days of sitting next to the bean sprout, bickering freely, having the freaking _time of his life_, he would suddenly feel sad. He would wish for the presence of those whom he had grown to treasure in the scant time that Allen had influenced him-- silently, of course, for his cave-mates would surely ridicule him-- and plead, silently, for the bean sprout to come back for him; to realize that he had been drowned in his lies again.

But then, he realized, he would be killed.

Killed because his views did not align. Killed because he was a tool in the cavemates' eyes. Killed because he would never agree to the morals that his cavemates had such conviction in.

And that was the last thing Kanda wanted.

He may have wanted it in the beginning; he may have wanted Allen dead, at first. But that was before he showed him what life was truly like; what it meant to be human, to be alive. Allen had become such a strong entity in Kanda's whirlpool of lies; had become the calming essence that settled the furious ocean. He no longer wished for the death or hardship of the bean sprout. He only wished that the bean sprout would find happiness.

And, Kanda added pleadingly, if his happiness involved taking Kanda back into the world of hope again, then he would surely come...

... For Kanda loved Allen with all his heart.

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Mm'kays. Well.

My honors world history teacher does _not_ teach by the curriculum (I love it, though), and pulled this out from his college Psychology days-- "The Allegory of the Cave", by Plato. And, god damn it, it was freaking _genius_. If you haven't read it, I recommend that you do; it hardly takes up any time but provokes a lot of thought. Basically, what Plato says is that we all have our own "caves"; our cliques, our worlds. If we were to be taken out of our cave, shown something new, we'd reject it at first, but grow to accept it and maybe even love it. And if we were suddenly thrown back into our cave, we'd suffer somehow. **I recommend you read it.** I'll use subliminal messaging if I have to D:

Anyway, I realized how much the Allegory could apply to all of our lives-- and then, to Yullen. So I spent about half an hour typing this out all in one go. Sorry if there are any mistakes; I was just so eager to get this out. I also haven't written any fresh Yullen in a while.

Reviews and criticism are greatly appreciated! -heart-

Sora Pwns x3


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